Sunday, July 8, 2012

Slow-Cooker Pulled Chicken

So... originally this post was supposed to be Homemade Ginger Ale.

And then when that tasted like crap, it was supposed to be something else (which I won't tell you, because there's hope for that yet).

However, I will tell you it involved an ice cream maker - which originally I couldn't use because I forgot to put the canister in the freezer. So I put it in overnight... and then our power went out early this morning.

But then it came back on, and I (mistakenly) thought the canister was ready so I got the ice cream maker going - and it ended up just doing a really thorough job of mixing everything, because the canister wasn't actually frozen.

ARGH.

So... Slow-Cooker Pulled Chicken it is!

This is a great recipe for when it's really hot out and you don't want to turn on your oven. (Like yesterday here in NJ... it's never good when you look at the weather forecast and see "High 103").

I believe you could also set it on low in the morning and it will be ready for dinner when you get home from work.

Slow-Cooker Pulled Chicken

1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 1/4 C. ketchup

1/4 C. brown sugar

1 T. + 1 t. Worcestershire sauce

1 T. + 1 t. soy sauce

2 T. cider vinegar

2 T. chipotle sauce* (see notes below)

1 t. molasses

1 T. Dijon mustard

3/4 t. garlic powder

Place all sauce ingredients in slow cooker - stir to combine. Add chicken breasts, nestling into sauce to coat. Cook on high about 3 hours, or until chicken is cooked all the way through and beginning to fall apart. Remove from chicken pieces from crockpot and shred with forks. Replace in sauce, stir to coat, and cook an additional ten minutes. Serve on potato hamburger buns, or other roll of your choosing. Makes 6-8 sandwiches.

*Note: "Chipotle Crushed Sauce" is available in the Spanish foods section of many grocery stores, in a small squeezable bottle - the brand I have is Goya. You also can substitute pureed canned chipotles in adobo sauce instead. You may also adjust the amount of any of the above to your taste for spiciness; 2 T. of chipotle sauce gives this a little kick and adds smokiness. (If you can't find chipotle at all, you can also use red pepper flakes to taste).